The Apothecary Diaries Season 2 released its finale in July 2025, fully adapting the novel up to Volume 4. Although a sequel has been announced with a short teaser, further details have yet to be revealed. While the first season only highlighted Suirei’s schemes in order to assassinate the Imperial Brother, the second season sheds more light on her goals and her connection with the Shi Clan. As one of the highest-ranking clans in the country, the Shi Clan has always been loyal to the Imperial family, but that all changed when the ruthless daughter of the previous clan head and the wife of the current head, Shenmei, came into power.
The greedy and vain woman single-handedly destroyed the clan’s legacy that stood for several generations, while Shishou did nothing but watch by the sidelines out of love for her. Suirei, the daughter of Shishou’s first wife, obeyed any order given to her by Shenmei despite the abuse she suffered. In the end, the only person who acted bravely was Loulan, the legitimate daughter of the Shi Clan. Even though her death was inevitable, she cherished the memories she made with Maomao while assuming the identity of Shisui, a servant girl. However, Loulan wasn’t the only one; even Maomao felt the same, even though she was never able to truly figure out the girl.
The Apothecary Diaries Stars Share Insights on Season 2’s Most Crucial Scene
Anime Expo 2025, the largest annual anime convention that has been held in California for over three decades now, held a panel for The Apothecary Diaries. The series’ voice actors were present at the event, and shared their experiences on working behind the scenes. ComicBook was in attendance at the panel where Loulan’s voice actor, Asami Seto, and Maomao’s voice actor, Aoi Yuki, talked about a scene from Season 2 Episode 21 where Maomao decides to continue addressing Loulan as Shisui.
Seto said, “I remember that I was really focused on this day’s dubbing, especially in front of the microphone.”
Yuuki added, “We didn’t have any detailed discussions about this scene, but we just understood each other and really put our feelings into the lines, and it felt like we were really absorbed in the role.”
“For such an important scene, the actor’s concentration is important, and we were able to dub in a great environment. After dubbing, Aoi was in charge of spending time together in a friendly atmosphere,” continued Seto.
After Loulan revealed her identity to Maomao, she never expected the apothecary to address her with her alias. In fact, Maomao did ponder a bit, but she realized she only had memories with Shisui and Loulan. To her, the friendship mattered more than Loulan’s complicated identity. As Shenmei’s daughter, Loulan led a very restrictive life and was never granted any freedom.
However, she was only given an illusion of freedom when she was pretending to be a servant girl. Loulan never said it, but she was happy to hear Maomao address her with the name she chose for herself. The scene also highlighted the bond between the two, as they prepared themselves for a heartbreaking farewell.
